Mexico

Our teams report that the migrants they treat—especially women and children—often have limited access to basic services and spend long periods in unsanitary, hostile environments. These conditions worsen medical issues such as respiratory infections, skin diseases, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and other mental health problems linked to exposure to extreme violence.

Despite these conditions, Mexico remains a key transit and destination country. Requests for asylum in Mexico increased exponentially in the past decade, reaching 86,000 in 2024. However, asylum seekers were just a fraction of the total number of migrants traveling through Mexico, many of whom aimed to reach the United States. According to official statistics, between January and August 2024, there were 925,000 people on the move in the country. However, migratory flows have since decreased in some areas such as Tamaulipas state, resulting in MSF concluding projects in Reynosa and Matamoros on September 30, 2025. 

Tapachula and Coatzacoalcos  

In Tapachula and Coatzacoalcos, southern Mexico, we assist new arrivals as well as people stranded due to difficulties in obtaining transit permits. In 2024, we adapted to the changing migration routes and responded temporarily in the towns of Suchiate and Juchitán.

Due to an increase in migrant caravans, particularly following the US election, we expanded our assistance through mobile clinics in late 2024.

Mexico City

In Mexico City, MSF teams provided medical care, mental health support, and physiotherapy to survivors of extreme violence—both Mexican citizens and migrants—in a dedicated clinic. In addition, we scaled up our mobile clinic activities in informal camps.

Reynosa and Matamoros

For eight years, MSF teams in Reynosa and Matamoros—cities along Mexico’s northern border with the US—provided comprehensive care including medical services, mental health care, sexual and reproductive health care, social work, and intercultural mediation. This northeast border project was launched in 2017 in response to the severe physical and mental health needs and living conditions of migrants, widespread violence in the country, and the limited capacity of local authorities to respond to mass influxes of people in cities like Reynosa and Matamoros. MSF’s work entailed building a continuous health response and providing trainings and roundtables with institutions, authorities, and organizations—making it possible to relocate operations to other contexts where needs are greater at this time.